The invention relates to a process and a catalyst for performing hydroformylation reactions by conversion of an olefinically unsaturated compound with hydrogen and carbon monoxide in the presence of a catalytically active organometallic complex, in particular a rhodium or platinum complex.
It is known to perform such a hydroformylation as a homogeneously catalytic reaction, with the organometallic complex dissolved in an inert solvent or in a solvent that can act as a ligand and for the metal. The disadvantage attaching to this process is that problems may arise in connection with loss of catalyst and in the subsequent processing of the reaction products.
It has also been proposed to perform the hydrofomylation as a heterogeneously catalytic reaction, using a catalyst consisting of a porous solid carrier material which has within its pores a solution of the catalytically active metal complex in a solvent. These catalysts are stable and may have great selectivity, but the activity per unit weight of metal is relatively low. It has even been proposed to immobilize the catalytically active complex by binding it to a solid carrier through the intermediacy of a group acting as ligand. This type of catalyst has until now been used for hydroformylation in the liquid phase.